Taking a day off from a favorite exercise doesn’t mean spending the time sitting on the couch. In fact, getting some R&R has a special meaning when it comes to exercise: Rest and recovery. Recovery is everything that happens after the end of one workout and before the start of the next. Whether you’re talking about taking a day off after every strength-training session to build muscles or taking a day off once a week from your usual cardio workout, you still want to engage in physical activity, just at a different pace, one without the challenge of intense training. Experts at the American Council on Exercise say moving is important, because it boosts blood circulation, and that brings nutrients to your muscles for recovery and growth. While a set recovery time is needed after every strength-training workout, with 48 to 72 hours between sessions being typical, recovery after other types of workouts, like high-intensity training or endurance training for a marathon, is much more individualized. Listen to your body to know when to take a break. For many people, it’s feeling more soreness than usual. For some, it may be after every three-to-five days of consecutive, strenuous workouts. Remember: If a workout causes soreness that lasts for several days, your workouts are too intense. Training should get you to the point where recovery time…  read on >

You don’t have to do hundreds of sit-ups and all manner of crunches to see abdominal muscle definition. The following moves are done standing and holding a weight, such as a 5-pound ball with an easy-to-grip handle. For the standing twist, feet are hip-width apart, toes turned slightly out to the sides for better balance. Holding the weight with both hands, extend your arms straight out in front of you, just below shoulder level. Squeeze your glutes to steady your hips and visualize pressing your abs into your spine as you twist your upper body to the right, then all the way to the left and finally back to center for one rep. Repeat up to 15 times per set. Gradually progress until you can complete three sets. For the overhead lean, stand in the same starting position, holding the weight, then straighten your arms all the way up toward the ceiling. With control, lean your upper body to the right, then all the way to the left and back to center for one rep. Repeat up to 15 times per set. Gradually progress until you can complete three sets. For side bends, hold the weight in your right hand. Place your left hand behind your head or on your waist for better balance. Keeping your hips, back and head aligned, slowly lean to the…  read on >

You don’t have to go to the gym for a strength-training workout. With these three moves, your own body weight provides the resistance needed to develop key muscles. Start with the classic wall sit. Press your back into a wall and slide it down the wall as you walk your feet out in front of you, bending at the knees. Your thighs should be parallel to the floor and make right angles with your calves. Try to keep shoulders relaxed. Hold for up to 90 seconds, return to standing and repeat. For a challenging twist, once you’re in the wall-sit position, straighten your right leg out in front of you, holding it parallel to the floor for five seconds, return and switch legs. As the exercise becomes easier to do, increase the number of times you alternately straighten legs while holding the sit. Jumping jacks, an old standby, are still effective and offer a cardio workout as well. Here’s how to make them more fun and more challenging: Start by standing with feet together, arms at your sides and then jump out with feet as wide apart as is comfortable as arms lift out to the sides and up to shoulder-level. When you jump back in, cross your right arm over your left at mid-chest and cross your right leg over your left leg. Jump…  read on >